Fly Skill


Homebrew and House Rules

Dark Archive

I find myself unable to use this skill because it keeps causing more questions, confusion, frustration, and headaches during my game. As such, I'm seriously considering returning the 3.5 flight mechanic while playing Pathfinder, eliminating the Fly skill altogether. What may I expect as difficulties by doing this? Opinions on doing this?


Why does it cause a confusion? It's like an aerial Acrobatics. It's used for complex maneuvering in air. Maybe don't eliminate it, but stop looking at the chart. If the maneuver is difficult, have it be a DC 15, and so on.

Sure, not having to use that is much easier. It's like being having a very high save at something. You roll because you "have" to roll (assuming no natural 1 danger). Being immune is much easier, you don't even bother rolling.

Try a last read at the rules, and imagine situations while doing so. If, despite all efforts, it keeps on being that cumbersome, you are the DM, you play by your rules. And the Fly skill may not be one of them.

Dark Archive

So, can someone with the fly spell turn on a dime? What happens when they fail the DC check (active fly spell makes it difficult to fall)? Do you always have to move if you don't have the hover feat, even with the fly spell?

These are example questions that came up in my last session, and my group couldn't find the answers in the rulebook. Thus, why I'm leaning towards the 3.5 flight. :)


Pathfinder Adventure Path, Lost Omens, Rulebook Subscriber

1) No, they need to make a fly check. This is not usually relevent in 3.x or Pathfinder by the fact you can choose your starting direction at the beginning of your turn without reference to your previous turn. But if you want to make the turn all within one turn (flying around a buoy or whatever) you would need to make the check.

2) If you winged flight, and fail by more than 5 you would fall. If using non-winged flight you just cannot preform that maneuver.

3) You can hover just by making the fly check. You cannot produce the debris cloud without the feat.

-

I think you will find 3.5 largely as complex, but I doubt you see any real issues with using it. Though clumsy flier are were always a frustration as its very difficult to make to make a <45 degree turn on a grid map. But if you feel that much more comfortable with them, I doubt your players will mind.

Dark Archive

So... if they fail their fly DC check with the magical flight (or winged flight if they only by < 5), they continue in a straight line? Or do they have to sacrifice another 5 ft of movement to attempt the check again (such as move 90 degree turn), effectively staying in the square they want to stay in until either they run out of movement, fall, or succeed on the check? This is where most of the confusion lies.


The Pathfinder fly rules work pretty well for winged creatures, but the fly spell is essentially unplayable as written. Instead of reverting to the 3.5 rules, just modify the spell description for fly:

Quote:

The subject can fly at a speed of 60 feet (or 40 feet if it wears medium or heavy armor, or if it carries a medium or heavy load). It can ascend at half speed and descend at double speed, and its maneuverability is good.

Using a fly spell requires only as much concentration as walking, so the subject can attack or cast spells normally. The subject of a fly spell can charge but not run, and it cannot carry aloft more weight than its maximum load, plus any armor it wears. The subject gains a bonus on Fly skill checks equal to 1/2 your caster level.

A subject of the fly spell can hover as a free action without making a Fly check, and is subject to an ongoing feather fall effect for the duration of the spell. The subject can ascend at any angle (including straight up) at half speed without making a Fly check.

Should the spell duration expire while the subject is still aloft, the magic fails slowly. The subject floats downward 60 feet per round for 1d6 rounds. If it reaches the ground in that amount of time, it lands safely. If not, it falls the rest of the distance, taking 1d6 points of damage per 10 feet of fall. Since dispelling a spell effectively ends it, the subject also descends safely in this way if the fly spell is dispelled, but not if it is negated by an antimagic field.

I would suggest similar rules for all monsters that use a magical form of flight (e.g. anything with a fly speed but no wings).

Dark Archive

strumbleduck wrote:

The Pathfinder fly rules work pretty well for winged creatures, but the fly spell is essentially unplayable as written. Instead of reverting to the 3.5 rules, just modify the spell description for fly:

Quote:

The subject can fly at a speed of 60 feet (or 40 feet if it wears medium or heavy armor, or if it carries a medium or heavy load). It can ascend at half speed and descend at double speed, and its maneuverability is good.

Using a fly spell requires only as much concentration as walking, so the subject can attack or cast spells normally. The subject of a fly spell can charge but not run, and it cannot carry aloft more weight than its maximum load, plus any armor it wears. The subject gains a bonus on Fly skill checks equal to 1/2 your caster level.

A subject of the fly spell can hover as a free action without making a Fly check, and is subject to an ongoing feather fall effect for the duration of the spell. The subject can ascend at any angle (including straight up) at half speed without making a Fly check.

Should the spell duration expire while the subject is still aloft, the magic fails slowly. The subject floats downward 60 feet per round for 1d6 rounds. If it reaches the ground in that amount of time, it lands safely. If not, it falls the rest of the distance, taking 1d6 points of damage per 10 feet of fall. Since dispelling a spell effectively ends it, the subject also descends safely in this way if the fly spell is dispelled, but not if it is negated by an antimagic field.

I would suggest similar rules for all monsters that use a magical form of flight (e.g. anything with a fly speed but no wings).

I really like this change to the fly skill, but it still doesn't answer the question what happens when a creature with magical flight fails a fly skill check when attempting to turn more than 45 / 180 degrees during leveled flight. Do they move forward 5 feat or stay in their square for the failed check? Can they perform another check by sacrificing another 5 feet of movement?

Dark Archive

I think I'll post this question in the Rules forum, since this is now migrated to that type of subject. Thank you everyone for your input.

Community / Forums / Pathfinder / Pathfinder First Edition / Homebrew and House Rules / Fly Skill All Messageboards

Want to post a reply? Sign in.
Recent threads in Homebrew and House Rules